Phil Taylor of Cleveland Browns sells T-shirts to help families of victims of West, Texas fertilizer plant explosion

Phil Taylor and several players of the Cleveland Browns football team wear T-shirts (photo below) dedicated to raising awareness and funds for the victims of those affected by the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas.  Not to make light of the Boston Marathon bombings, the incident in West, Texas hasn't received as must attention.

Taylor, who attended Baylor University in nearby Waco, Texas, wanted to raise awareness and funds for the victims.  Recent stories in the news have overshadowed the West, Texas explosion and he wants to correct that.  Taylor and his manager started a campaign to market and sell T-shirts with the slogan "We Are West, TX" for $25 each with all proceeds going to families of the victims.  They have a goal of $100,000.

This is a great story.  Someone (Phil Taylor) with the stage of a professional team took the initiative to be the voice of those who needed one.  He could have just donated money, but using T-shirts prompts others to recognize the awareness is needed and provide help in the form of buying a T-shirt.  You look good wearing it.  You look good buying it.  You look good for helping.

Do good things.

Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III who played at Baylor is supporting the campaign by posing in one of the T-shirts.

Eric Fisher, NFL No.1 draft pick already has T-shirts

The value of being the No. 1 draft pick in the 2013 NFL draft cannot be measured merely by a signing bonus or a fat contract.  No, its measured by the merchandise.

Eric Fisher became the No. 1 draft pick, being selected by the Kansas City Chiefs.  Without having played a game yet, Fisher's jersey number 72 is already on sale along with various T-shirts.  The T-shirt picture below displays the statement "When the boogeyman goes to sleep, he checks the closet for ERIC FISHER."

How valuable are you?  When people are willing to put out good money for a T-shirt with your name, you instantly become a beacon of hope.  A brand.  For now until the last T-shirt faded from this earth, you will live forever upon these T-shirts.

Now its time to live up to the pressures of being selected first.  Earn the value of those T-shirts.

Williamsville, NY lacrosse team remembers Billy Wilson

The Williamsville North High School (New York) lacrosse team honored the memory of former player Billy Wilson who was killed in Afghanistan in March 2012.  The T-shirts carry the slogans "Home of the Free", "Because of the Brave".

The story of Billy Wilson begins in high school when the lacrosse coach was forced to throw five players off the team for violating rules.  One of the players was the goalie.  To fill that hole, Billy Wilson, a freshman at the time, was put into that position.  While his start was rough, he took the opportunity to become better and show a quiet leadership that most took notice to.

Upon graduation, Billy entered the US Army where in his seven year career he led his squad on 200 missions, until sadly, he was killed in eastern Afghanistan.  

At the one-year anniversary of his death, 1,000 mourners gathered to remember Billy Wilson with T-shirts.  The lacrosse team had been selling air fresheners and buying T-shirts to raise funds for the Billy Wilson Scholarship Fund.  They presented the Wilson family with a check for $1,500.

Do good things.

Oklahoma Thunder gives away 18,000 T-shirts to build community with the team

Aside from music concert T-shirts, sport team T-shirts are a MASSIVE portion of the T-shirt sector.  Right now, the NBA playoffs are occurring and the Oklahoma Thunder in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma are using T-shirts to establish a connection with fans and community.

The Thunder team operates under three primary principles; Team Work, Community and Selflessness.  To engage the fan base and establish a sense of community, the Thunder organization has been printing and putting 18,000 T-shirts on seats in the area - each playoff game.  As seen by the pictures below, the slogan is the same "Rise Together", but each section of the arena is outfitted with either blue or white T-shirts, alternating between sections.  The results is an eye-catching visual treat for those in the arena and the estimate 4 million viewers on the cable network channel TNT.  (KJRH)

As estimated and noted in the story, there are a potential of 27 playoff games that could be played in Thunder's arena.  At 18,000 T-shirts per game, that's a total of 490,000 T-shirts.  Staggering numbers.  Staggering dollars too.  Considering each T-shirt is printed for maybe $5 each, that's an estimated $90,000 a game going to some lucky screen printer, with a full deal of all 27 playoff games of equating to $2,450,000.  Again, these are my estimates.  Even at $1 per T-shirt, some screen printer is making $18,000 a game.  Nice coin.

Getting away from the glitter of the money, the visual presentation, the offering of free T-shirts to the fans, the building and maintaining of community with the team is a very powerful action and step taken by the Oklahoma Thunder organization.  This is an excellent example of how T-shirts, given away in great quantities can have a positive reflection and reaction by those physically wearing the T-shirts, and those who see the T-shirts and know the story behind it.  It certainly helps when you have 4 million views on TV, when they're watching the game.

Here's an interesting note.  As of May 15, 2013 the 500,000th free T-shirt was given away.  That's half a million T-shirts given away since 2010.  

Boston Bruins wear 'Boston Strong' T-shirts for Bruins-Penguins game

The fans, staff and players of the Boston Bruins wore the NHL stylized 'Boston Strong' T-shirts before their game with the Pittsburgh Penguins.  Additionally, the Penguins head coach, Dan Bylsma, and some of the team players also wore the 'Boston Strong' T-shirts.  All proceeds from the T-shirts are going to The One Fund which helps victims of the Boston bombings. (NESN)

Classy move by the Penguins to wear the T-shirt as well during the media presume availability.  Based on many T-shirt vendors I've seen, they are all coming together and donating to The One Fund.  

Do good things.

Leon Sandcastle - No. 1 pick in NFL Draft

Under Armour is at, again.  The fictional character, Leon Sandcastle, will appear in novelty T-shirts for Under Armour.  He first appeared in a NFL Network TV spot during the last Superbowl.  He is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft which starts April 25, 2013.  His fictional background comes complete with an official website, Twitter and Instagram following.  (ESPN)

I normally don't cover sports celebrities that much, but this case is fun.  A fiction character with pre-made nicknames and attitude.  If Leon is the first pick in the draft, he's going to Kansas City Chiefs, right?  Or, will they trade that pick for other players such as Luke Joeckel, Eric FIsher or Star Lotulelei.

Have fun!

Seattle Shower and Catch 'N Chug

If you missed the incident of young Johnny R. Turk who caught a baseball at a Seattle Mariners baseball game, in his beer, then chug the beer - you missed out.  Worry not my friends.  Below you'll see a short clip of the now famous scene.  (CBS Sports)

Within 24 hours of the incident, Turk created T-shirts and a website due to requests of people wanting to buy a T-shirt to commemorate the event.  Turk did so.  You can buy a T-shirt at his website here - http://catchnchug.com/

Who can deny the entrepreneurial spirit of people.  If he can get 15 minutes of fame, and a few dollars for it to pay off college debt, more power to him.  

Which design do you like the best?

Updated 05/01/2013:
Sadly, the two T-shirt images and the website noted above have been lost.  I did manage to find the Seattle Shower T-shirt, though, somewhere else.

Pittsburgh Pirates offer free epic T-shirt of AJ Burnett

Now you can take the bass-ass AJ Burnett with on an officially licensed T-shirt from the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Regardless how good, or bad the Pirates do in 2013, the team wants the fans to know they are damned lucky to have Burnett on the team.  The T-shirts will be given away Friday before the game with the Cincinnati Reds.  Don't miss out. (Larry Brown Sports)

AJ Burnett certainly does look bad-ass.  The T-shirt displays an attitude, but check him out in the animated gif.  Tats, muscles, crossed arms.  He's got it all.  At times it can almost seem gluttonous with the merchandising.  Its nice to see a professional team giving back to the fans.

Is it an epic T-shirt?

Cougars for a Cure T-shirts to honor fan

All Spring sports athletes at Newnan High School (Georgia) will be wearing and selling T-shirts emblazoned with "Cougars For A Cure" during the week of April 8-12 to raise awareness of cancer.  Its an awful disease and the funds raised through T-shirt sales will go to the Cancer Support Group of Coweta County which supports the community by offering meals, transportation, financial assistance and counseling.  On the back of the T-shirt has a tribute to Danny "Boomer" Bishop, a loyal Cougar fan, who is very ill with cancer.  (Times-Herald)

Great story of fellow students helping someone fight through this terrible disease.  Best wishes to Danny and to the Spring athletes.  

Do good things.

Unhappy Miami Marlins fans ejected from stadium for wearing T-shirts

The Miami Marlins baseball team went through a roster purging in the off season, cutting many marquee players such as Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle, and the general manager, Ozzie Guillen.  It seems the purging didn't help as the Marlins are off to a slow start for the 2013 season.  During Monday night's game a fan was ejected from the stadium for wearing a T-shirt criticizing the Marlins team decision with the message "Helping other teams get better since 1998." (Sports World Report)

Drink, yell, shake your fist in frustration.  That's ok.  But, wear a T-shirt with a message that criticizes the front office's decisions… that's not allowed.  Once confronted by security the fan offered to turn the T-shirt inside out, hiding the message, but too late.  He was still ejected.  Goes to show just how powerful a T-shirt can be.  

Keep Calm and Watch Cardinals baseball

The local store, Paperdolls Boutique, a west St. Louis County boutique, has created a T-shirt in support of the professional baseball team, St. Louis Cardinals with great success.  The T-shirt has the slogan "Keep Calm an watch Cardinals baseball".  Is a spin from the World War II era English slogan of "Keep Calm and Carry On".  

The success and response has been so good they are receiving calls from fans in Japan and England, wanting a shirt.  They've create a new email address to support those wanting a T-shirt, since their phone is always ringing with orders. (Kirkwood, MO, KSDK)

Call me jaded, but I wonder how long its going to take the owners of the Cardinals team to cry foul and slap the boutique with a cease-and-desist order, claiming copyright infringement.  I suspect fairly soon since the T-shirt is selling very well.  A salute to Paperdolls Boutique for hitting the right market at the right time.  I wish them grand success.

Keep calm and carry on.

Nike T-shirt Storytellers

I guess I should have considered it, but Nike has its own T-shirt design team.  Learning from their past, they continually seek new and better ways to market sport icons in the form of T-shirt.  Since T-shirts are a universal language upon walking canvases, it opens the door for someone to take design to the next level.  

Jack Aguirre of Nike's Basketball T-shirt design team introduced illustration art to T-shirt designs.  The below short video explains the story going into such designs for Nike athletes LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant.  

Being the comic book fan that I am, found these designs to very appealing.  Take a look.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_xCG0Fs4Pk

Kevin Ware gets the attention, but no money for T-shirt sales

For those who follow the NCAA's basketball tournament, you may have seen or heard of the horrific injury sustained by Kevin Ware.  In response to this, entrepreneurial efforts were undertaken whited caused some people to be bothered by it.  Adidas, teaming up with the Louisville, began selling T-shirts with Ware's jersey number, but not his name.  Since Ware is an unpaid amateur, he won't be getting any of the proceeds from the T-shirt sales, because no one in contractually required to pay him.

On April 3rd, the school decided to forfeit any royalties from the T-shirt sales.  In response to that, Adidas is donating a portion of each sell to the university's scholarship fund.  It appears as though the greed at someone else's injury was checked, Kevin Ware still is not getting paid.  (SB*NATION)

I admit to not knowing the NCAA rules, but I suspect college students cannot get paid for merchandising.  Sad.  Kevin Ware breaks his legs and everyone else around him makes money, except him.

Verizon Center T-Shirt Gatling Gun Guy

From the SB*Nation Casual Hoya comes an interview with the Gatling Gun Guy.  Follow the link below to read the interview and marvel at the gatling air gun used.  The pictures are amazing.  Anyone who's been to a basketball game has most likely seen the single shot cannon which fires T-shirts out to the audience.  That's fun.  But this… this gatling gun looks like a blast.

http://www.casualhoya.com/2013/3/7/4054662/georgetown-hoyas-verizon-center-t-shirt-gatling-gun

Here's a short video of the gatling gun in action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjsNjVzWiRE

Portland Thorns women's soccer team pulls T-shirt from sale

"Feelin' Thorny?"

The women's Portland Thorns soccer team is removing a popular T-shirt from their team's website once  criticism from social media started.  Available for less than 24 hours, the T-shirt had sold well.

http://www.oregonlive.com/playbooks-profits/index.ssf/2013/03/portland_thorns_womens_soccer.html

How sad that the team felt compelled to remove the T-shirt that both fans and the team liked in response to others who had criticism.  I wonder how many of those doing the criticism live in Portland, or even knew the team existed prior to the devilish T-shirt being unleashed upon the unsuspecting world.

I like the saying.  Its a fun play on words and promotes the team name - "Thorns."  Don't you get it?  Portland - City of Roses.  Thorns.  Thorny.  Idiot criticism.  I think some people make it their life's mission to seek out ways to be offended.  They are not happy unless they are offended.  This is an excellent T-shirt that fans want to buy and wear.  They should not be denied.  I hope the T-shirt is put back on the team's website.

Go Thorns!

Keep Calm and Johnny Football

Keeping calm is the latest buzz in T-shirt controversy right now.  First Solid Gold Bomb and their violence against women T-shirts.  Now we have a company representing Texas A&M Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel filing a lawsuit to stop the sale of T-shirts using his "Johnny Football" nickname.

The lawsuit was filed by Manziel's limited liability company JMAN2 Enterprises, LLC against Eric Vaughan of Fairview, Texas.  Manziel's company filed for the trademark of "Johnny Football" on March 2nd and its still pending.  

It'll be up to the courts to determine if they can stop Eric Vaughan from selling the T-shirts or have to pay any lost compensation.  Until then, Johnny Manziel is a hot commodity, and everyone is wanting a piece of that pie.

Is Eric Vaughan wrong is what he is doing?  Until the trademark is finalized, is he really breaking any laws, other than trying to make a quick buck off someone else's name?

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/21780051/company-representing-manziel-files-suit-to-stop-sale-of-tshirts